Since then, Skaneateles has gone 5-1, including Monday night's impressive trip to Phoenix, where the Lakers’ defense was in peak form and a big third-quarter surge led to a 68-19 romp over the Firebirds.

Not caring about Phoenix’s 3-9 woes, Skaneateles played a superb first half, gradually shutting Phoenix down, especially in a 17-4 second quarter that led to a 31-11 edge at the break.

Even that was a warm-up, though, for what the Lakers did in the third quarter. Aside from maintaining its defensive superiority, Skaneateles flattened Phoenix with 30 points in those eight minutes, getting whatever it wanted from numerous sources.